HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL: Bobcats dig deep for win

SAN ANGELO, Texas - The Central High School Bobcats have one of the deepest basketball rosters you'll find in West Texas, and that depth was on display more than ever Friday night against Lubbock High.

Five Bobcats scored in double digits — and the team's leading scorer this year, Reggie Sutton, wasn't even one of them — as Central stormed past Lubbock High 82-46.

Central jumped out to a 16-0 lead only three minutes into the game, and the Bobcats finished with 31 points in a fast-paced first quarter.

They led 51-26 at halftime, and their lead swelled to 70-34 by the end of the third quarter.

Central head coach Jaime Boswell said it was one of the best starts and best top-to-bottom performances his team has had this season.

"Thirty-one points in the first quarter is pretty good. You'd love to have that every night," Boswell said. "We just have to keep getting better and keep working on the little things, and keep getting our guys coming off the bench a little more playing time so we can build even more depth."

Central improved to 13-3, while Lubbock High dropped to 3-12.

Twelve of the 13 Bobcats that suited up Friday scored. Rey Pederson was the top scorer with 12 points, followed by Hunter Kinyon, Ray Holland and Justin Saddler with 11. Deon Morgan had 10.

Sutton, a two-time All-West Texas selection who regularly scores 20 or more, had only six points, but his scoring punch wasn't needed on this night.

Kinyon opened the game with a quick 3-pointer, then hit another to cap Central's 16-0 run to start the night. He finished the first quarter with nine points.

Lubbock High's Isaac Rodriguez and Dequilin McGraw hit back-to-back 3-pointers to get the Westerners within 31-17 at the end of the first quarter, but Central started fast again with a 10-2 run to open the second quarter and put the game out of reach.

Lubbock High was never within 20 again.

"We just came out with a lot of intensity and focus," Kinyon said. "That's what we work on every day in practice, on our press break and press, and we came out real hard tonight."

Boswell said his team looked "sluggish" in a 67-63 win Tuesday over Lubbock Monterey, which followed a five-game tournament slate the previous weekend.

He decided to give his team the day off Wednesday, and it seemed to make all the difference.

"They came back energized and had a great practice Thursday, and you could tell tonight," Boswell said. "We were running all our stuff well, especially up and down the floor. Our fast break was going really well.

"Every sport you play is a mental thing. You've just to be mentally prepared to play, and I think we were definitely mentally prepared to play tonight."

The Bobcats will try to keep rolling when they travel to play Brownwood on Monday, followed by a road trip to Seguin on Tuesday to play Gregory-Portland.

The start of District 3-5A play is still a few weeks away on Jan. 3.

"Hopefully, we'll go into district the way we've been playing," Kinyon said. "If we keep that up, we'll be great for district."